P&P: Vanities and Vexations
by slytherinsal
Summary: Georgiana Darcy is old enough to come out. Darcy and Elizabeth also take Kitty and Mary Bennet to London with them. Anne de Bourgh strikes up an unlikely friendship with Kitty and suitors start to appear in force. Not all is going smoothly however...


_I'm leaving up chapter 1 as a taster because as the revised version of this story is about to go up on Kindle I am required to remove all other electronic copies. Thanks to all the people whose reviews made this possible!I should also make clear that this story is also available in paperback.  
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**Chapter 1**

"I know the very concept makes you nervous, Georgiana dear" Elizabeth Darcy put her arm around her sister in law, who was dandling small Ned Darcy – properly Bennet Edward – on her lap "But it cannot really be escaped."

"I suppose not" said Georgiana in a small voice "I wish though that I did not need to have a Season and be presented to Society; though I suppose I should be pleased that at least I will not have to be Presented at Court."

"I suspect that would be very tedious and trying" said Elizabeth. "However, you will not be alone in society; I will be your chaperone, as well as Miss Annesley being there, and Jane and Mr Bingley will doubtless come to such balls and routs as we throw for you even if they decide to cry off other engagements. And mama has been most adamant that Kitty shall share your come-out too."

Georgiana gave a wan smile.

"Far be it for me to criticise you mother darling Elizabeth, but when she wants something it is a trifle like being King Canute trying to turn back the tide to stand against her" she said.

Elizabeth laughed.

"Oh that is why Fitzwilliam gave in with such good grace and in such a hurry; he did not wish his smallclothes to be inundated with the salt water of a sea of tears and plaints" she said.

Georgiana giggled.

"Elizabeth your _tongue_!" she declared.

"She is my mama; I love her. I am also alive to her faults and love her most dearly when she is in Hertfordshire and I am safely in Derbyshire" said Elizabeth. "Kitty is to be returning to Pemberley with us when we have visited my family for Christmas – and my sister Lydia is NOT going to be there, she is following the gun somewhere on the Peninsula" she added hastily.

Georgiana still got most upset over hearing Wickham's name; the intelligence that he would neither be at Longbourn nor in London delivered in so oblique a fashion calmed her however.

"How – how is Lydia?" she asked.

Elizabeth sighed.

"She wrote that she was increasing again" she said. "Little George is a few months older than Ned. Lydia is not very adept at avoiding consequences it seems" she added with unguarded waspishness.

"What do you mean?" Georgiana was wide eyed.

Elizabeth flushed; she should not have spoken so in front of Georgiana, but it was said now and could not be unsaid. She had more control of a tart tongue than before she had matured but some things made her lose control of it still!

"Why, merely that there are ways of having some measure of control over how often one has children" said she. "I will tell you all about it when you have met a good man and are planning to be wed. It's nice for the children to have some years between them as well as being better for their mother's health."

"Oh" said Georgiana dubiously.

Elizabeth doubted that Georgiana had much understanding of the intimacy between men and women; and speaking of the uses of vinegar would come as a shock to her. At least the herbal means to deter pregnancy would be less embarrassing to discuss.

Well the first hurdle would be to get Georgiana talking to men and dancing with them; there would be no marriage, let alone offspring, if Georgiana found it impossible to discourse amicably. Kitty could be relied upon to lead any conversation; and now that she had been separated from Lydia for a goodly while, she was too becoming much quieter and less hoydenish and could be relied upon to show off the good manners in company she had absorbed from Georgiana as well as with patient teaching from Elizabeth rather than display the vulgarity that characterised her and Lydia's behaviour, encouraged rather than curbed by their mother.

Elizabeth was glad that her mother was not to accompany them to bring Kitty out! It had been so clever of Fitzwilliam to forestall any such suggestion by remarking that obviously they would be happy to have Kitty in their household since Mr Bennet's health was too indifferent for his wife to wish to leave him, leaving a strong implication that if Mrs Bennet intended coming to London in the spring, she might as well bring out Kitty for herself.

Small Ned made his presence felt and wriggled to escape from his aunt's lap at this juncture; and Georgiana put him carefully on the floor where he wriggled – backwards – happily across the carpet.

"I recall mama telling me that Fitzwilliam went directly from wriggling on his belly to standing, without bothering to crawl" said Georgiana softly "The Darcy stubbornness you see!"

Elizabeth laughed tenderly; she could easily picture Fitzwilliam in his son.

oOoOo

There was a lot of preparation for an impending season; dress lengths of cloth to be purchased to be made up, and trim for the same, and a lot of poring over copies of _La Belle Assemblée_ in the hopes of predicting how fashion might have changed by the spring of the next year when the Season began. They had hired a dressmaker to undertake much of the sewing who listened patiently as requirements were discussed, making notes of what the ladies wanted.

"Waists have been high for many years; you do not think they will fall, do you, Elizabeth?" asked Georgiana anxiously.

"I cannot think so" said Elizabeth "But it will be easy enough if there is a change to the bodice to make new ones, putting the sleeves onto the new shape, for it will be an easy matter to shorten the skirt at the waist and attach new fastenings to the bodice. Equally sleeves in any new shape may be added if we purchase something of a surplus. We shall too cut all skirts long, so that if they are worn floor length they will require no alteration but if they are to be shorter we may adjust that at the bodice line to avoid having to spoil the trim."

"But what will BE the trim?" cried Georgiana "I hate this whole idea enough without worrying about being dowdy!"

"Georgiana, you are so lovely, you could go to a ball dressed in a turnip sack and I doubt anyone would notice the clothing for the face and figure that wore it" laughed Elizabeth. "I have noticed the appearance of a few ruffles in the same colour as the gown in some of these _Belle Assemblée_ pictures and in those of _Ackermann's_ so I will guess that ruffles of the same fabric will be in fashion; and white muslin will not I think be OUT of fashion. These wonderful Indian figured muslins and those with gold threads in are beautiful and we will keep the styles simple and add decoration nearer the time however. I am going to make a guess that skirts will be wider however; they are most horribly confining at the moment and it cannot last another season; I am sure that ball gowns at least will have more to them since dancing in the narrow skirts we are wearing now must be impractical."

"Oh I hope you are correct!" said Georgiana "I would not wish to make a figure of myself with the wrong silhouette!"

"Well we shall have the skirts made up wide because it is easier to take them in than let them out" said Elizabeth sensibly. "And if we need to make alterations, Miss Annesley will help, will you not, Miss Annesley?"

"Of course I will, Mrs Darcy" said Georgiana's companion warmly. She was grateful to have kept her position in the Darcy household when Mr Darcy had a wife to chaperone Georgiana; and grateful that she was treated almost as one of the family. Georgiana looked upon her as a mentor, and if she was not as fond of her companion as she was of her new sister, was fond enough. And Elizabeth found Miss Annesley's calm good sense an excellent thing especially if Georgiana were starting to fret herself as she could do.

"Spencers at least do not seem to change greatly save in terms of decoration" said Elizabeth "I fancy that we should avoid the affectation of military touches and stay with gothic touches that still seem quite popular. And again a good plain Spencer can be readily embellished with such garniture as seems appropriate."

Georgiana gave her a look of gratitude. Military touches were definitely going to touch a raw nerve; she appreciated how clever Elizabeth was to veto that without having to explain a thing to the dressmaker!

"What of necklines Mrs Darcy?" asked Miss Annesley "I think that high necks are nicer for a young girl for day dresses."

"I agree" said Elizabeth "Or with a good chemisette. I do not think that will change. It is my opinion that the gothic and romantic features are on the increase; lace standing collars and ruffs can be added to a plain neckline however and might merely be made up beforehand. They will need to be detachable for easy laundering of course in any case so it matters little. Equally detachable gauze sleeves can be added or not. A full puff sleeve on the bodice may be taken in, or caught up with ribbons according to the style prevalent. Plain print gowns with a modest puff sleeve will be serviceable and pretty for daywear and may be easily refurbished. Over sleeves in gauze and embellishment to match on the bodice can do a lot to change the style"

"You are very clever, Elizabeth" said Georgiana.

Elizabeth laughed ruefully.

"Having a very fixed income makes for ingenuity" she said "I believe there is a Latin quote upon the subject which I am sure Mary could tell us."

"_Necessitas mater inventum est_" said the deep voice of Fitzwilliam Darcy, come to see how they did.

"What does that mean, brother?" asked Georgiana.

"It means that you evidently acquired no Latin" teased Darcy "It is 'necessity is the mother of invention'."

"Well it is true enough" said Elizabeth. "There is nothing like needing a way to do something to cause one to cudgel the brain into contemplation of some way of achieving it."

"We could wait until we got to London you know and merely utilise the services of a modiste" said Darcy.

"Oh! Indeed we shall for the majority of gowns" said Elizabeth "But they will take time to be made up and there will be other girls coming out wishful for the same thing, and some will doubtless be better connected or with more sisters who will spend more with the modiste over a number of years so that our needs might be superseded by the claims of others."

"You are a cynic my love" said Darcy.

"What, Mr Darcy, has it taken you a year of married life to make that discovery?" Elizabeth flirted her fan at him so that he knew she teased. He was learning to accept teasing and recognise it, though he had found it so hard at first there had been moments she had hurt him unintentionally; and that had hurt her so much more!

"No Madam Wife, I am just usually too proud to accept that my wife has such prejudices and flaws"

He had learned to tease her back as well.

Elizabeth flirted the fan again and her dark eyes smiled over the top of it.

Georgiana smiled politely at the dressmaker.

"Those are some ideas to be going on with" she said "We hardly need to hold you up further with discussion; Miss Annesley and I will help you cut out the pieces. I expect that my brother wishes my sister-in-law to help him with the estate accounts. Miss Annesley, please ring for nurse to take Ned to the nursery."

"Good girl" said Darcy approvingly.

Elizabeth smiled at Georgiana and dimpled at her husband as he offered his arm. He waited until they were out of the room before kissing his wife thoroughly.

"Georgiana acquires tact AND diplomacy" he said in satisfaction.

"My husband, to muss your wife in the corridor is neither tactful nor diplomatic" said Elizabeth "I suggest we should retire to more suitable quarters."

"I concur thoroughly" said Mr Darcy.


End file.
